Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates, in general, to a vane assembly, and more particularly, to the vane assembly, a gas turbine including the vane assembly, and a method of assembling the vane assembly of the gas turbine.
Description of the Related Art
A turbine is a mechanical device that produces torque due to impulse or reactive force using a flow of compressive fluid, such as steam or gas. The turbines may be categorized as a steam turbine using steam, a gas turbine using hot combustion gas, or the like.
The gas turbine generally includes a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine. The compressor has an air inlet, through which air is introduced. A plurality of compressor vanes and a plurality of blades are alternatingly disposed within a compressor casing.
The combustor generates a high-temperature and high-pressure combustion gas by supplying fuel to air compressed by the compressor and igniting the gas mixture using a burner.
The turbine includes a plurality of vanes and a plurality of turbine blades alternatingly disposed within a turbine casing. In addition, a rotor is disposed to extend through the central portions of the compressor, the combustor, the turbine, and an exhaust chamber.
Both ends of the rotor are rotatably supported by bearings. A plurality of disks are fixed to the rotor to connect blades, and a driving shaft, such as a generator, is connected to one end on the exhaust chamber side.
The gas turbine does not have portions rubbing against each other, such as a piston and a cylinder, since a reciprocating mechanism, such as the piston, of a four-stroke engine is not used. Accordingly, the gas turbine has the following advantages: the consumption of lubricant is extremely low, the amplitude, which is the characteristic of the reciprocating mechanism, is significantly reduced, and high-speed movement is possible.
Air compressed in the compressor is mixed with fuel before combustion to produce the high-temperature combustion gas, which is then injected toward the turbine. The injected combustion gas generates torque while passing through the turbine vanes and the turbine blades, thereby rotating the rotor.